Cat Fur Conudrum

[kahoona]

I have a terrible cat fur problem with my PC and everything else!! I have burned out 3 Roombas because of fur in the bearings and the stinky things sleep on top of my ONKYO home theater receiver too because it gets nice and toasty when they block the vents! Has anybody found a good way to keep the cat fur out of the PC? I fear that filters would clog fast and cause overheating but the fan grills fur up quick too. I was wondering about a snorkel and separator similar to the ones trucks use. That or some form of external filter and duct setup. How about simply replacing the entire side panel on the case with a good cleanable HEPA type filter? I suspect most of us have cats so what do you do?
Rob

 

[RallyMaster]

Delete cat.exe.

 

[jdkick]

A few questions:

-is your PC on the floor?
-how often do you brush your cats?
-do you have a good vaccum and how often do you use it?

 

[CDC Mail Guy]

My stupid ugly girl cat (thats what I call her when I like her) sheds horribly. My PC is on the floor, but I have regular fan filters that I just wipe off regularly. No need for HEPA filters, they're just aluminum, and if kept clean with damp rag, I don't worry about overheating.

I like the deletecat.exe though

 

[manimal]

I keep my office cat free....They own the rest of the house though. Compressed air is your friend. As is filters in your case.

 

[Fullmetal Chocobo]

Originally posted by: manimal
I keep my office cat free....They own the rest of the house though. Compressed air is your friend. As is filters in your case.

For keeping the cat out of the office? My cats seem to have it to. I thought about lining the entrance to the office with cans of air like a Maginot Line since we can't shut the door to the office (gets too hot).

OP: Is shutting the door to the office an option for you? Even keeping the cats in their own room created fur issues in my machines, but it helped.

 

[manimal]

Originally posted by: Fullmetal Chocobo

Originally posted by: manimal
I keep my office cat free....They own the rest of the house though. Compressed air is your friend. As is filters in your case.

For keeping the cat out of the office? My cats seem to have it to. I thought about lining the entrance to the office with cans of air like a Maginot Line since we can't shut the door to the office (gets too hot).

OP: Is shutting the door to the office an option for you? Even keeping the cats in their own room created fur issues in my machines, but it helped.

I had to install a separate AC for the upstairs of the house just to keep my office cool in the summer so the rest of the house didnt have to be kept igloo style. Speaking of a maginot line, I run a roomba in the upstairs since our guest bedrooms are up there and we have no kids- the cats stay far away from where it patrols. At first they loved it and played around it but one day we came home from work and the younger one was trapped in a corner with a plastic bag around its neck with the roomba trying to vacuum up the bag. Now we dont leave plastic bags around the the cats stay away from the upstairs....

 

[kahoona]

Hi
Loved the suggestions. I also run the Roomba but it has not yet attacked the cats. The fur is getting into the bearings and damaging the moter so It needs constant cleaning but it is probably saving the PC. I tried to get the cats to ride Owsley (the Roomba) but they would not. I tried to run the delete cat.exe program several times but the Wife.exe program developed serious issues when I tried besides they are my buddies (sad huh.) I liked the case filter that could be wiped off. Who makes it? The PC is on a bottom shelf. It has to be. Don,t ask. That is why I was thinking about a snorkel (grins.) Oh BTW Wife.exe runs the catbrush program on one cat daily but the other (longhaired and 20 lbs) will not tolerate it. We have to cover hid head with a black hostage head bag, put on welders gloves and clip his claws before we even try and he bites to the bone if he gets mad enough. ER here we come! Other than that he is a real sweetie!
Rob

 

[agathodaimon]

no cats are allowed in my computer room... Unless I am in there with them, and they are not allowed to "love" the corners of the computer case.

I just make sure I keep that room as tidy as possible... If you have a chair mat, keep it clean, and wipe down the desk once a week... Get rid of any collecting dust/cat hair bunnies.

My Sonata case has a filter at the front of it that I clean about once a month (if that) that collects enough debris that I miss to make a difference.
I only clean my case out once a year basically, and I have yet to find any hair clogging anything inside of it.

BTW, I have four cats.

 

[idiotekniQues]

i have 2 cats. p180 with the filters over the front fan. i have zero issues with cat hair in my rig. only a 850 square foot 2 bedroom apartment so the cats are by the pc all the time.

 

[kahoona]

So to get the filters I need to replace the case. It is time anyway WTF. What is a reletivly inexpensive brand with filters. Colling is more important than flash since I have 5 hd's and a quad in there and I need good flow.
Rob

 

[nerp]

Don't rely on the roomba alone. Get yourself a quality vacuum (not a $49 walmart special) and use that thing every other day. I also suggest a quality air purifier and filter for the room. Oreck makes an excellent model. It's about $350.

 

[The Boston Dangler]

positive air pressure in a pc case will keep the insides very clean and cool, if there's a decent filter on the intake.

 

[Skott]

One of the reasons I moved to SFF rigs is because I didnt like the cat and dog fur getting into the case fans while my cases sat on the floor. So I switched to cases that I can put ontop of my desk. Cats and dogs are allowed into the room but not ontop of the chairs or desk. No more fur problem. And since last summer we now have mATX mobos that allow for some good OCing for those people who like to OC their rigs. The SFF world is improving all the time. The need for big towers isnt what it once was IMHO.

 

[gingerstewart55]

Originally posted by: The Boston Dangler
positive air pressure in a pc case will keep the insides very clean and cool, if there's a decent filter on the intake.

I've never understood the whole "positive air pressure" in the pc case thing and it helping anything.

To have positive air pressure, you're blowing more air in than is being exhausted, right?

So where's the air coming from in the first place? Outside the case, right? So, in essence, you're still blowing cat fur laden air into the case and I don't see how that solves anything.....the air is probably causing more problems that way, anyway.

Since you're bring more in than is exiting, the fur entering is just being trapped inside and floating around adhering to anything and everything inside instead of moving through quickly and being taken out quickly.

So, how does positive pressure work anyway? And really, how much positive pressure can you really build up in a pc case, with all its openings....like around your fans, optical drives, etc......and with normal pc fans (not talking insane fans like a San Ace 110 cfm fan or the like.)

Because, to me at least, it seems more logical to me to want either a balanced in/out flow. From what I have noticed about pc fans, like S-Flex, Zalman F3's, and the like, the more pressure they have to work against, and in this case positive air pressure, the less air they actually move. I know it's a rare fan that can maintain good air flow against resistance like a watercooling radiator, even an open one like a Thermochill.

 

[Bluefront]

Dust and cat hair can be kept out of your computer if you use the right filter setup. It has to be a DIY project......there are no stock cases built for extreme dust and cat hair problems.

Positive pressure is the only answer in extreme conditions, along with good/big filters. If you blow all the air into the case, and have good filters in front of the intake fans, all the airflow into the case will be filtered. Nothing will get sucked through the cracks, and no dust will get into the fans.

The severe dust problem I face in my house has been solved as far as the computers are concerned. The rest of the house still requires frequent cleaning, not daily however. :laugh:

 

[chuckm]

Originally posted by: RallyMaster
Delete cat.exe.

I have to agree, eliminate the problem

 

[idiotekniQues]

Originally posted by: chuckm

Originally posted by: RallyMaster
Delete cat.exe.

I have to agree, eliminate the problem

kitty with broccoli?

 

[aigomorla]

Originally posted by: RallyMaster
Delete cat.exe.

R O F L!

But i think the op is looking for humane and options where he can do cat.exe v2.0

Filters would be your best bet. These are my personal favorates, and so far the ones i feel work the best, and is also the easiest to clean! (the last part is just as important)

http://www.jab-tech.com/120mm-...an-filter-pr-2470.html

 

[manimal]

Nice filters aigo. just ordered some and will try em out on my htpc and the bedroom pc since the cats use both of those as perches-thrones.

 

[Nathelion]

Originally posted by: chuckm

Originally posted by: RallyMaster
Delete cat.exe.

I have to agree, eliminate the problem

Die Endlosung must be implemented!

 

[Bluefront]

Those Jabtech filters are cheap.....but that's the only good thing about them. The surface area of the filter is pathetic.....resulting in quickly clogging in dusty environments, and causing over-heating and possible hardware failures. Useless IMHO...

 

[aigomorla]

Originally posted by: Bluefront
Those Jabtech filters are cheap.....but that's the only good thing about them. The surface area of the filter is pathetic.....resulting in quickly clogging in dusty environments, and causing over-heating and possible hardware failures. Useless IMHO...

really? i like them, because there the most free flowing.

Also the filter access is simple, just pop off the front cover, dip the filter in warm water for about 15 min, and lay out in the sun to dry for about 30 and its done.

Havent seen another filter where you dont need to remove the entire unit to clean.

Also cuz there so simple to clean, thats why you clean them often so you get the best performance. If its not trapping dust, then its pointless no?

 

[JasonSix78]

Originally posted by: gingerstewart55

Originally posted by: The Boston Dangler
positive air pressure in a pc case will keep the insides very clean and cool, if there's a decent filter on the intake.

I've never understood the whole "positive air pressure" in the pc case thing and it helping anything.

To have positive air pressure, you're blowing more air in than is being exhausted, right?

I think it's the other way around isn't it; Positive pressure means you have more air going in than coming out?

 

[Bluefront]

aigomorla.......the whole idea of a filter is to keep out dust, cat-hair, and other crap. A "free-flowing" filter just means it's not doing much filtering. If you're serious about filtering, you'll have to go further than those Jabtech things. The bigger the better with a filter. You can install a big/good filter like some of those in my link.....and not touch it for six months, and still have a clean case that's running cool.